The Serbian Minister of Energy, Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic, announced on LinkedIn that she met with representatives of the French nuclear energy company EDF. The company has prepared a preliminary technical study on the possibilities of the peaceful use of nuclear energy in Serbia. As the minister wrote, the study provided a clear direction for the country to build a solid institutional and regulatory framework, train workforce, and conduct a detailed technical-economic analysis. Serbia could be ready within the next five to seven years to take the first steps towards constructing a stable, safe nuclear facility.
Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic also spoke with representatives of the Vinča Institute for Nuclear Sciences about cooperation in developing nuclear energy.
Vinča Institute as a foundation for a nuclear programme
“By adopting amendments to the Energy Law, Serbia has opened the possibility of developing nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, as we need to think strategically about future energy security,” she said. “This is impossible without strengthening the human resource base. We already have a good foundation, but we want to strengthen it further, and we recognise the Vinča Institute as part of the foundation for establishing a nuclear programme in our country.”
“The Ministry of Mining and Energy, as the institution leading the nuclear programme on behalf of the Government, is working on forming a special sector for nuclear energy, and cooperation with the Vinča Institute in this field will be important for us.”
EDF has recently received significant attention for its legal challenge against a Czech nuclear tender.